by Barbara Gee
“Yep. Izzy’s gonna come monitor us.”
Vince groaned. “That’s code-speak for saying she’s gonna push us until we puke.”
Jolene laughed. “I taught her well, huh?” She reached up and patted Vince’s cheek. “Buck up, buttercup. You’ll thank us during training camp when all the guys who took it easy over the summer are sucking wind and you’re barely breaking a sweat.”
“Tomorrow. Six.” Boone gave him a slap on the back as he walked past.
“Night, Callie. Thanks for putting up with us.”
“Good night, Jolene. I’m so glad you came.”
As soon as the door closed, Vince swung Callie around and dropped his mouth to hers, as if he’d been waiting all evening to kiss her again.
There was instant heat.
“I loved seeing you with my friends,” he said when he finally raised his head for a breath. “You like them, right? You had fun?”
“What’s not to like?” Callie asked, smiling happily, dazed from his kiss, as usual. “And yes, I had so much fun. I hope I didn’t talk too much. I think being so isolated out here has made me starved for conversation with people from the ‘outside.’ Have I been talking your ears off every time you come too?”
“Not at all, but I wouldn’t mind if you did. I love to hear you talk.” His hands moved across her shoulders, his thumbs catching her collarbone.
“Maybe I’ll become a real motor-mouth and put you to the test sometime.”
“I’ll pass it,” he said confidently.
“You sound mighty sure of yourself.”
“Because I am,” he said, his voice going low and rough. “Every time I’m with you it gets better, Callie.”
She stared up at him, her heart full. “Me too,” she whispered. “How’d this happen?”
“Right place at the right time?” he suggested, his eyes sparkling.
“Maybe it’s that simple, but I think your theory about God putting us together is closer to the truth.” She pulled his head down for a quick, hard kiss, then rubbed her cheek back and forth along his jaw, enjoying the feel of the long scruff against her skin. “Mmm. I love that you’re such a man.”
“You’re not into pale, skinny, buffed, and waxed?”
“That would be a definite no,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “Do you need to get going or shall I make some coffee?”
“I can stay for a little while yet, but I don’t need coffee. I drank enough with dessert.”
They went to the living room and sat on the sofa, pressed together from shoulder to knee.
“Talk to me about the home nurse thing,” he said. “How does it work?”
Callie propped her feet on the coffee table. “It’s a home-health agency. They’re headquartered in Fargo, but they have branches out in the rural areas. I think there are five or six nurses that primarily work at the one closest to us, and they can call in more from other branches as needed. Or share theirs. I signed Grandpa up at least a month ago. I took care of all the paperwork, and they said to call when we’re ready to start. Basically, you set up a schedule for each week, based on how many hours, and which shifts you need.”
“So you’ll have someone come at least for the shifts you’re supposed to work at the retreat center?”
She nodded. “I’m supposed to be there from seven to noon, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Those are probably the only days I’ll schedule for a nurse this week. If it goes well, maybe we can do that again next week, so I can spend more time with Lance, Sam and Quinn.”
He took her hand between both of his. “Can I make a request?” he asked hopefully.
“Of course,” she said, looking up at him with a soft smile.
***
That smile. It got him every time. So often her lovely green eyes showed worry and weariness, but when she truly smiled, or better yet laughed, he felt like it was Christmas.
“Schedule the nurse for Friday night, too, so you can come to our tournament,” he urged. “Have you ever been to one?”
She nodded. “Yeah, but never one when Boone was there. Or you, of course.”
“The one last night went great. I went to quite a few last summer when I was here, but this was the first time I participated. Boone and I changed things up a little with the skills competition, and it went really well.”
She let her head rest against his shoulder. “Okay, I’m an easy sell. If the agency has a nurse available for Friday evening, I’ll gladly come.”
He decided to push his luck. “Will you eat lunch with me the other three days you’re there?”
“Hmm. If I do that, people are going to start talking.”
“Good. I want every male in and around Barlow to know you’re taken.”
She raised her head to look at him, her eyes gleaming as she gave him a wide smile. “I am,” she said softly. “I’m so taken.”
“Come here,” he said, patting his leg with one hand and putting the other arm around her waist, lifting her easily up until she was on his lap facing him, straddling his thighs. He liked her at that height, almost eye level with him. She propped her hands on his shoulders and her eyes smiled into his.
It was all he could do to not to lean slightly forward and kiss her. He always wanted to kiss her. They needed to talk for a while first, though. Because as good as things were between them right now, they couldn’t afford to ignore the looming issues that would all too soon rear their ugly heads.
“Why didn’t you like living in Minneapolis?” he asked carefully. Her smile gradually faded, indicating she knew why he was asking. “Be honest,” he urged. “I need to know what I’m up against once the season starts again.”
She shifted on his lap. “I didn’t totally hate living there,” she said slowly. “There were a lot of nice things about it. I liked having cute coffee shops and little cafes that I could walk to from my apartment. I also liked how easy it was to get together with people. I went out with my co-workers a lot, and it was fun trying new places and eating a lot of food I’d never even heard of before.” She grinned. “I mean, I love the Barlow Diner and all, but their menu hasn’t changed in at least a decade.”
He couldn’t help but smile back. “Okay, so what didn’t you like about it?” he asked, even though he was pretty sure he already knew the main thing.
She dropped her eyes and her fingers twisted in the fabric of his shirt. Her shoulders rose in a small shrug. “I guess the biggest thing is that it was there, and the ranch and everyone I love are here.”
She was silent for a moment before finally looking up at him again. “I’ve never known how to be anything other than a country girl. Even the college I went to was in a small-town setting. I was able function in the city, but I was out of my element.” She shook her head and her gaze fell to his chest. “I yearned for this place. The peace and quiet, the wide open spaces, the beauty I’d always taken for granted.” She cleared her throat and gave another shrug. “Maybe if I tried it again, now that I know more what to expect, it wouldn’t be so bad.”
Vince settled his hands on her slender waist. “Would you do that?” he asked softly. “Would you be willing to try again, if you had a good reason?”
Her green eyes flicked back up to his, a tiny smile curving her sweet lips. “You mean if you’re the reason?”
He chuckled. His girl wasn’t one to tiptoe around things, and he liked that. “Yeah. Would that be a good enough reason to consider it?”
She didn’t answer right away, so he gave her more. “Look, Callie, I know my profession doesn’t make any of this easy. I’m a slave to my contract. I can’t miss any practices or games unless I’m physically incapable of playing. There’s no flexibility. When management says jump, I jump. That’s the way it is, and me finding a girl I want to bring into my life won’t change it. Until my contract is up, in two years, I’m completely beholden to the team.”
“But you love it, right? There’s nothing else you’d rather be doing?”
“I do
love it,” he said honestly. “I can’t imagine not playing.”
“Then hockey is exactly what you should be doing, for as long as you’re able, or until it’s no longer what you want. You’re using your God-given talent, and it brings people a lot of joy. Me included.” She spread her hands on his chest, and he felt the heat of them through his shirt. “I wouldn’t ask you to give up playing, and if I’m still in your life, I’d want to be wherever you are. It’s just hard for me to imagine not having the ranch, you know? Even though I wasn’t thrilled about living in Minneapolis before, I was okay because I knew I had this place to come back to.” She gave him a sheepish look. “I know I’m getting way ahead of things by projecting out that far, but hey, you’re the one who brought it up.”
“Callie.” He took her hands in his, blown away by the realization that she was saying she’d consider completely giving up the Double Nickel for him, if it came to that. He leaned forward and pressed his lips softly to hers, holding them there for a few seconds before pulling back. “Baby, I don’t want you to ever think I’d ask you to give up your ranch. I might selfishly beg you to stay with me in Minneapolis for most of the season, so I can spend as much time with you as possible, but I’d never let you give up the Double Nickel.”
She shifted again, her expression solemn. “Keeping the ranch would be the ideal, but I doubt it’d be feasible. Ranches can be tricky as far as finances go…..even more so when the owner isn’t on-site to oversee things. I don’t know if the Double Nickel could survive with an absentee owner.”
That was because she thought the ranch had to be totally self-sufficient financially, all the time. Vince dipped his head to catch her eyes.
“There’s an upside to my crazy schedule and all the other demands of my job, you know. Heck, my contract is public information—you probably already know how much I make. Keeping this place going if there’s a bad year, or if you need extra to keep up with the maintenance and salaries and everything else, it wouldn’t be a problem. It would be money well spent. Gladly spent.”
Now she was the one who seemed to be blown away. Her beautiful eyes widened and her lips parted, then she tugged her hands from his grasp and slid her arms around his neck, her upper body relaxing against him, her cheek against his.
“We’re getting way ahead of ourselves,” she said, sounding happy in spite of the warning.
“Maybe so, but I know you’re a thinker and a planner. When you’re thinking through the idea of us being together, I don’t want you to think you have to give up your ranch.”
Her arms tightened. “I appreciate that, Vince, more than you know. You’re eating away at the last pieces of my resistance.”
“Good. I want them all gone.” He rubbed the back of her head fondly. “No resisting, Callie Green. It’s full speed ahead for you and me.”
She giggled. “I’d say we’ve already been doing that.”
“And it’s been the best two weeks of my life.”
“Even though it’s been all take and no give on my part?”
He hated that she saw it that way, because he felt like he was getting plenty out of the deal. “What do you mean, no give?” he asked. “You’ve given plenty. Your company is all I really need, but I’ve also gotten free riding lessons and a lot of incredible meals. I’d say I’m making out okay.”
“There would have been a very long list of people eager to give you free riding lessons, if you’d put out the word. Meals, too.”
“But you’re the best teacher and the best cook.” He wrapped his arms around her back. “You make me happy, Callie.”
He felt her deep sigh. “I hope so. I don’t want you to think this is all about me needing you.” She pushed up so she could look him in the eye. “Believe me, Vince, I’d like you even without the situation with Grandpa.”
“So, it’s not just a matter of me being better than nothing?”
She grinned and shook her head. “If I didn’t like you, I’d much rather it be just Grandpa and me. I would have never agreed to teach you to ride. Or anything else.”
He moved his hands up and down her back. “I want this to work,” he said softly. Which was the understatement of the year.
She slid her fingers slowly though his hair, clasping them at the back of his head. Her gaze dropped to his mouth and he smiled.
“Do it,” he whispered.
Her eyes jumped up to his, then back to his lips as she pulled his head toward her. He didn’t move as she brushed her lips softly across his, back and forth. It was a light touch, yet it sent heat spiraling through him. Then her nails scratched lightly across his head and the tip of her tongue came out to taste him, and he was done with the whole sitting back and letting her take the lead thing. He curled a hand around her nape, slanted his head and claimed her mouth in a deep kiss, with all his want and need poured into it.
He felt a shudder pass through her body and she pressed closer. Closer. And then she gasped and pushed away, off his lap but still on her knees beside him, dropping two more quick kisses on his lips before giving a soft groan and standing up, hands on her hips.
“How do you do that?” she asked a little breathlessly. “You kiss me and I turn to mush. Every single time.” She looked at him uncertainly. “I think I’m a little out of my league here.”
He held a hand out to her and she took it and pulled him up.
“No, Callie, we’re in the same league, trust me,” he said, dropping her hand and shoving his own in his pockets to help him resist the urge to reach for her again. “It’s never been like this for me either. This thing between us, the way we feel—it’s so strong and it’s kinda scary, but that tells me it’s right. It means we care a lot about how it turns out, and that’s the way it should be, don’t you think?”
She nodded quickly in agreement. “But my resolve has never been tested like this. It would be so easy to—” she waved a hand, embarrassed. “You know.”
“Mmm. I do know.” He smiled and tried not to let his mind go there. “We can do this, Callie. We’re going to make this relationship work and go the distance. And when we do get to the…..you know…..part, it’ll be well worth the wait. I’m one hundred percent positive about that.”
She couldn’t quite look at him, and he thought it was adorable. This girl was it for him, the one he was meant to find. God had brought them together, he felt that deep in his soul.
She folded her arms and finally looked up. “You always manage to say and do all the right things, Vince. I’m starting to think you’re too good to be true.”
He raised his head and looked down his nose at her. “That’s funny, because I think the same thing about you.”
Her smile came again. “So…..what? We’ll be too good to be true together?”
“Yep.”
She rolled her lips together, her expression thoughtful. “Aren’t you afraid it’ll wear off and we’ll find hideous flaws, and it’ll all go south?”
“Nope.”
“Are you afraid of anything?”
“Yep. A couple of things.”
“Care to share?”
“Not now. Maybe someday.”
She stepped toward him and dropped her forehead onto his chest, her arms still folded. “I really like you, Vince.”
He pulled his hands from his pockets and cupped her head, his fingers threaded into her soft hair. “I like you too, Callie.”
She sighed contentedly. “Good. I guess we’re still doing this then. The cowgirl and the hockey player.”
He tilted her face up, making her look at him as he grinned. “Lace ’em up and skate, baby.”
CHAPTER 24
The next week had been full of crazy ups, and disheartening downs. Callie’s mornings at the retreat center had been so good. She loved working with the horses there, but that had only part of it. Spending time at the ice rink had been the clincher. Watching Vince and Boone work with the veterans had shown her what she already knew. They were good, good guys. Caring and
patient and encouraging. The vets responded so well to them, laughing and having fun, learning the sport of hockey, and not focusing on their disabilities.
Some of the men and women were able to skate with regular skates, others had to use the sleds. Those were the ones Vince seemed to gravitate toward. He made sure their sleds were adjusted just right, and got on a sled himself to teach them specific plays. He wasn’t all that good yet, which made him the butt of a lot of good-natured jokes, but he obviously enjoyed himself and didn’t mind the teasing.
Callie tried to spend at least an hour at the rink all three days, because she loved watching him so much. On the third day, Thursday, she got an unexpected treat. She walked over to the rink right after the morning feeding, not realizing that the sessions with the retreat goers didn’t start for another half hour. She saw Boone and Vince out on the ice, though, so she snuck into an unlit section of seats.
For the next thirty minutes, she watched two masters of the sport work out. They skated drills, they worked the puck up and down the ice over and over, taking turns handling the puck and trying to steal it from the other. They took at least a hundred shots each, from every location in the zone. It wasn’t for fun, either. It was a serious workout, and they were both sweating and breathing heavily after finishing up with several fast laps around the rink. Racing, of course. Those two were always competing.
They were hanging over the rink wall laughing at something when she made her way down to them.
“Hey, guys.”
Two handsome heads swiveled, one smile a little bigger than the other.
“Callie. You’re early. The first session hasn’t even started yet.”
“I’ve been watching you guys for half an hour. Thanks for keeping me entertained.”
Vince grimaced. “You didn’t see him beat me on the backwards skate, did you?”
“Mm hmm. I’m sorry to say he showed you up pretty good. You need to work on your corners.”
He groaned and Boone laughed. “Care to put on a pair of skates and show me how it’s done?” Vince teased.